One of the web's longest-running tech columns, Android & Chill is your Saturday discussion of Android, Google, and all things tech.
We live in a world where nothing is truly free, especially online. You might think you're just innocently scrolling through an app, reading an article, or buying a new gadget, but in reality, you're constantly leaving behind a trail of digital breadcrumbs. This trail is your personal data, and it's gold to the companies collecting it, especially around shopping days like Black Friday.
We all know how that part works, and we all have some opinion about it; maybe you don't even care. That doesn't mean what companies do with and how they use all that digital gold isn't important. This is exactly what sparked recent concerns about data collected from Gmail, though I'm here to tell you they're blown out of proportion.
It's time we pull back the curtain on this digital exchange and talk about why knowing what companies are actually doing with your data isn't just a nerdy technical concern, but a core part of protecting your privacy, your wallet, and even your peace of mind.
This week, a big internet fuss has been made about a "new" Gmail setting that allows all of your message data to be used to train AI models. It's not true, though. The idea of Google collecting even more data is terrible, but the company specifically tells you it's not being used to train AI:
We do not use your workspace data to train or improve the underlying generative AI and large language models that power Gemini, Search, and other systems.
Google is using this data, once "anonymized," to help fight spam or improve spell-checking. After investigating, I left myself opted in to this one. If Google can improve Workspace tools, it can then charge more. Once again, data turns into cold, hard cash.
The first, and arguably most important, reason to care about the data you're sharing with companies is that in the modern digital economy, you are the product. If you aren't paying for a service, you can bet your data is.
Companies have built multi-billion-dollar business models on collecting as much data as possible. They use it to build an incredibly detailed, comprehensive, and sometimes unsettlingly accurate digital profile of you. This profile includes demographics, political leanings, financial status, health and fitness interests (even though personal health issues are not used for any monetization), personal relationships, and a wide range of other habits.
Some companies then sell or share access to this profile with other companies -- often called data brokers -- who package it up and sell it to marketers and advertisers. Data has turned into currency.
If they aren't selling it outright, they are using it to drive their own business model, like Google does. When you see an ad for a particular or obscure product you were just thinking about, that's not magic -- that's your detailed profile in action.
"Personalized" is the digital buzzword for "optimized to make you spend." Companies often frame data collection as some sort of tool designed to make your life easier. We all appreciate having our shipping address remembered or getting genuinely useful recommendations.
The problem starts when personalization veers into manipulation. Your data isn't just used to reflect your preferences; it's used to predict and influence your behavior.
Price Discrimination: Your browsing history, device type, and even your location can be used to gauge how much you are willing to pay for a product. Companies may offer you a higher price than they offer someone else because their data profile suggests you can afford it or are less likely to shop around.
Hyper-Targeted Messaging: Your profile allows advertisers to target you at your most vulnerable or receptive moments. If an app knows you're struggling financially, it might hit you with loan ads. If they know you've been reading about the Florida Keys, it might flood your feed with airline ticket prices.
When you understand that the goal of the algorithm is often not to serve you but to steer you, the importance of knowing the mechanism behind the steering wheel becomes clear.
Every piece of data collected is a liability waiting to be exploited. Data breaches happen, and the more data a company holds, the bigger target they become. Tech companies have huge budgets to prevent this, but it also applies to storefronts like Walmart and Target, or even your utility companies.
A bigger issue is what I call "unintended discrimination." Automated decision-making can lead to biased outcomes.
For example, your location data, online social connections, or even the places you shop could feed into an algorithm that decides your eligibility for a loan, a job interview, or even a higher education opportunity. Computers decide everything now, and computers have no ethics. Even if it's inadvertent, mistakes like this happen.
You can't do much about the data being collected, but you can be choosy. Read the privacy policies of any company you plan to interact with. Yes, I know they are boring and often written in lawyer-speak, but you can count on companies following them. The liability of not doing it is too high, and why risk the gold mine by breaking your own rules?
Don't let the technical jargon intimidate you. You don't need a computer science degree to be a data-aware consumer. You just need to be curious. The next time an app or website asks for permission, pause and ask yourself two simple questions:
Do they really need this data to provide the service?
What is the worst-case scenario if this data falls into the wrong hands?
Knowing what companies are doing with your digital self is the essence of digital self-respect. It's the only way to ensure that as the world becomes more connected, you remain the owner of your own life and your own story.